Ophelia actually yawned whilst the monarch was speaking, and when he
had concluded, kept smiling upon him with palpable contempt, and
glancing round at the decorations and beautiful objects right and left
of her, remarked in a languid, drawling tone--"If you are not content,
King Famcram, why did you come?"
This filled up the measure of her iniquity, and drove the king nearly
mad. Half beside himself with rage, he seemed to those about him to
foam at the mouth as he spluttered forth his furious answer.
"Vile wench! you and your father shall suffer for this! You shall, by
all that a Pigmy holds dear I swear it. The fate of Binks and Chinks
shall be paradise to _your_ lot, you wretched scum of the earth. Ho!
guard, seize these traitors at once, and have the lowest and darkest
dungeon made ready for them without delay!"
A groan burst from the lips of the unfortunate Pigspud as the royal
lips pronounced these words, for in them he naturally saw the
realisation of his worst fears. But before one of the guards could move
hand or foot, the fair Ophelia, with the same smile continuously upon
her lips, took a step or two forward, and, holding out in her hand the
little jar of which we know--but of the existence of which everyone
present was profoundly ignorant, said in a remarkably calm and clear
voice--
"Pray listen: King Famcram, determined I am
To ask you to taste of my raspberry jam!"
Scarcely were the words out of her mouth when a perceptible change came
over the face, voice, and manner of Famcram. The first turned ghastly
white; the second sank to a low whisper; and the third lost all its
violence, and became as quiet as the manner of a sheep when in the
hands of its executioner.
One shiver passed over the king's frame, as if there was a strong
internal struggle; but it was over in a moment. Murmuring something so
indistinctly that no one was quite sure what he said, but apparently
something about "not liking to refuse a lady," he shuffled forward to
meet Ophelia, whilst the crowd around was plunged in the deepest
amazement at his strange and altered conduct.
The maiden, as he approached, took a small silver salt-spoon from the
table near her, scooped out of her jar a good spoonful of the jam, and
held it to Famcram's mouth. He meekly received the spoon therein, and
devoured the jam without a word, good, bad, or indifferent. The next
moment he grovelled--literally grovelled--at Ophelia's feet, covering
them with kisses, and vowing that he was her slave for life.
The people could hardly believe their eyes, and looked at each other as
if they felt that they must all be in a dream, or suffering from some
optical delusion, and that it could not be a reality which was passing
before them. But Ophelia took it all quite as a matter of course.
She ordered Famcram, in haughty tones, to kneel on all fours, and as
soon as he had done so, she sat down upon him with the greatest
calmness.
Wonder upon wonders! The tyrant, who had shown every disposition to
treat his people like miserable slaves, seemed now to be reduced to
more abject slavery than the meanest of his vassals.
A moment before, he was uttering threats of vengeance against his host;
now, he was prostrate and humble, the meek servitor of that host's
daughter.
No one could imagine whence or how this mighty change had come, but the
voice of Ophelia soon turned their thoughts to other things. Still
seated upon her living stool, she bade the guests be seated, and told
them that her father would do the honours.
Having seen her power displayed in so miraculous a manner, no one felt
the least inclined to disobey her, the more particularly as her
commands were by no means of an unwelcome nature, and the feast was one
of a very inviting description.
No one offered to interfere between the lady and the sovereign, being
probably of opinion that to do so would expose themselves to danger
without benefit to their lord and master, for whom, moreover, none of
them had any very particular affection. Accordingly they obeyed
Ophelia's commands without either reluctance or hesitation, seated
themselves at the tables and began to attack the good things thereupon
without any unnecessary delay.
Meantime Ophelia kept her seat, and Famcram, not being particularly
strong, soon groaned beneath her weight, especially as she did not try
to lighten his burden, but sat as heavy as she could, occasionally
lifting her feet from the ground to give greater weight to her body.
The king spoke not a word, however, being apparently restrained by some
power. He merely panted and breathed deeply, once or twice trembling so
as to shake the maiden. Whenever he did so, she struck him a sharp blow
on the side of the head with the back of her hand, addressing him at
the same time with epithets the reverse of complimentary.
"Beast, keep quiet." "Be still, you stupid brute," and such like
ejaculations were all the king got from his fair mistress, and this
continued until the banquet was well nigh over, and most of the good
things consumed. Then Ophelia arose, and taking the king by the ear
(which she pinched and twisted so that an involuntary yell broke from
the unhappy sufferer), led him to the head of the table at which her
father was presiding. The latter trembled even then, partly for fear of
the extraordinary power possessed by his daughter, and perhaps in a
greater degree lest it should suddenly fail her after all, and the
vengeance of the enslaved monarch be worse to endure than would have
been his first anger.
No such fear, however, troubled Ophelia, who had her own purpose in
what she was now about to do. She desired to show to the people her
great and full power over their sovereign, and this she had already
done; but it was by no means part of her plan that they should cease to
pay him deference, or at least obedience, for it was through him that
she could alone possess that power over them which she fully intended
to gain. She therefore caused him to be seated at her father's right
hand, and to be supplied with food and drink of which she directed him
to partake. Famcram obeyed at once, meekly and without complaint, and
ate what was given to him with a grateful glance at Ophelia, such as a
dog might have given to a master who had thrown him a bone.
She, meanwhile, seating herself on the other side of her father,
listlessly asked for some boiled chicken, and, whilst she trifled with
her knife and fork, began to converse upon indifferent subjects, making
no allusion whatever to the incidents of the day. This behaviour caused
the Chief Justice the greatest astonishment, and at another time he
would have demanded explanations of his daughter without delay.
But his joy at the unexpected turn which things had taken, and at his
own safety, at least for the time, from the peril with which he had
been so recently threatened, caused him to take less notice of the
matter than he would otherwise have done.
To speak the truth, moreover, his joy had been somewhat increased and
his spirits in no small degree elated by an unusual quantity of dry
champagne which he had imbibed in the excitement of the moment, so that
things appeared natural and reasonable to him which would generally
have seemed most extraordinary.
Ophelia meantime was playing her game well. She judged--and judged
rightly--that the conduct of the king in throwing himself at her feet,
in allowing her to sit upon him as if he were a chair or stool, and in
afterwards meekly following her to the head of the table, would be
attributed to nothing else than devoted love by a great many of those
who were present, and especially by such as had not been near enough to
witness his first outburst of anger, or to hear his first words, which
had certainly not been those of affection.
This idea would be speedily followed by another, when the guests saw
her seated on one side of the Chief Justice and King Famcram on the
other.
What _could_ it mean save that she was about to be raised to the
highest dignity in the kingdom, and to share the throne and power of
Famcram as his queen?
This was in fact the resolution which she had formed, and determined to
omit no precaution which might ensure its success. So she sat and ate
at the banquet, already looking and feeling like a queen, and her
device fully succeeded in making the people believe that things were as
she desired.
But all this would be insufficient without some public avowal on the
part of the king, and she resolved that this should be given.
Presently, therefore, she leant forward across her father, and,
steadily looking Famcram in the face, thus addressed him:--
"King, your wish--the anxious wish of your heart--shall be gratified. I
consent to become your queen, and you may at once announce the happy
tidings to this august assembly."
As she said these words, the luckless Famcram turned quite red in the
face, and there was visibly another struggle within his breast between
contending passions. This struggle lasted longer than the first, and
not only did he make no sign of acquiescence to the lady's proposal,
but there were those who afterwards declared that they heard--deep and
low like the sound of fire struggling to burst loose from walls within
which it is enclosed--a sepulchral voice within the king which muttered
the words--"I don't want any queen."
But, whether such words were spoken or not, Ophelia was equal to the
occasion.
"Jam, dear, did you say?" she asked in her most winning tones, and in
another second the salt-spoon was out, and a portion of the contents of
the little jar transferred without delay to the king's mouth, whilst in
a low, determined voice, the maiden continued, speaking in tones which
could scarcely be heard by anyone save the king himself and the Chief
Justice.
"Speak out, slave, at once, and acknowledge me as your only queen."
Mechanically, as if moved by springs, uprose King Famcram. There was a
dead silence for a moment; then there burst forth a loud cheer, for the
guests naturally supposed that the king was about to speak, and knew
that it was proper to cheer before he said anything, in order to show
that they were ready to do so afterwards.
Then again there was a silence, and Famcram spoke these words:
"Ophelia Pigspud is my queen, and only she."
And down he sat again so suddenly that everybody thought it was by
accident, and there must be something more coming.
As, however, there was _not_, it was evidently the duty of all present
to cheer again, and this they did most lustily, again and again, though
a great many of them had not heard what the king had said, a great many
more thought there was something in the proceeding which they could not
understand, and still a great many more did not care sixpence, one way
or other, about the announcement.
Nevertheless, Ophelia had gained her end: the king had publicly
declared that she, and she only, was his queen, and the rest appeared
to depend upon herself.
By this time the Chief Justice was in a condition which rendered it
desirable that no further business of importance should be transacted,
for the excitement of the afternoon had proved altogether too much for
him. He was therefore assisted to his room, and retired amid loud
cheers from such of the guests as had not made sufficient noise before.
Then Ophelia directed the butler and his attendants to conduct Famcram
to the state chamber, and to direct the guards to be placed in the
usual manner.
The courtiers and guests were forthwith dismissed, and the eventful day
drew to its close.
Many and deep were the thoughts which occupied Ophelia's mind that
night; she had a difficult game to play, and though her spirit was high
and her courage undaunted, it was impossible that she should not feel
some anxiety as to the result. So far, indeed, all had gone well.
Famcram, who had evidently entered the banqueting-room with no better
intentions towards her father and herself than those which he had
entertained and carried out in the case of the unhappy families of
Binks and Chinks, had been entirely overcome by the magic assistance of
her godmother.
The jam had proved most efficacious indeed, and the evening had been
one continued triumph.
But doubts and fears still remained as to the future. At the very
moment of the king's recognition of her as his queen, he had but too
plainly evinced a disinclination to the step which appeared to indicate
that the power of the jam was but temporary, unless, indeed, it was the
last struggle of his obstinate nature against that power. He had
certainly yielded, and nothing could have been more complete than
Ophelia's victory. But then came the question, if the jam had not
sufficient force to keep the king enchained as her slave for a longer
time than the duration of the banquet, might not its power die away
altogether before morning? In that case, what would be her position if
the monarch, too wary to see her, and so run the risk of being again
subjected to the same treatment, should issue orders directed against
her and hers, and fully revenge himself for the events of the previous
evening?
True--if she retained the jar, she might operate upon his messengers in
such a manner as to prevent their inflicting personal injury upon
herself, but she would probably be unable to protect her father or his
property, as the power she possessed seemed to be personal, closely
connected with the jam, and such as could only be exercised when she
had the jar in her hand.
Suppose, again, that Famcram should awake during the night, discover
that he was not in his own palace, summon his attendants, and surprise
her father and slay or capture him whilst asleep. Or suppose he should
leave the house by stealth, and that next morning it should be
surrounded by royal guards before she was awake, and her jar possibly
taken from her.
All these thoughts passed constantly through the mind of the daughter
of Pigspud, and she got but little rest throughout the whole of that
long and dreary night.
Early in the morning she arose, performed her toilet with the greatest
care, and forthwith descended to the grand drawing-room of the mansion,
where several of the courtiers had already assembled. The king had not
yet made his appearance, and it must be owned that Ophelia awaited his
coming with some anxiety. Presently, however, the doors were thrown
open, and the sun shining through the great windows on the staircase,
fell full upon the bright red hair of the little monarch, making it
brighter than ever.
As he slowly descended, Ophelia grasped tightly in her hand the little
jar, which she kept concealed in the folds of her dress, quite prepared
to have recourse to it again immediately, if occasion should require.
She soon saw, however, that she need be under no immediate
apprehension. There was a submissive look about Famcram's general
appearance, and a humility even in his squint (which seemed that
morning to be more frightful than ever), which greatly re-assured the
maiden.
He came limping into the room, and bowed before her as he entered. Now
was the moment when Ophelia's course of action must be clear and
certain. She had already resolved upon it, and proceeded according to
her determination.
To keep Famcram in awe of herself--to preserve their last evening's
relations of mistress and slave--was positively necessary, but it was
equally desirable not to lower her future husband in the eyes of his
courtiers and attendants. She therefore saluted him with a graceful
bend of the head, and invited him to the breakfast-room, where they
took their seats side by side.
The Chief Justice was rather late that morning, at which nobody
manifested any surprise, having seen that his fatigue was great on the
previous evening. Ophelia therefore had everything to do, and she did
it admirably. The guests were well treated, the breakfast was
excellently arranged, and everybody appeared satisfied and in good
spirits.
At the conclusion of the repast, Ophelia notified to the king that he
should appoint a time that morning at which he would receive his
subjects, and publicly fix the day upon which their marriage should be
celebrated.
The little man made no objection, and trembled visibly when the maiden
fixed her eyes upon him. So it was arranged that at a public audience
to be held at twelve o'clock, the king should make solemn proclamation
of his intended marriage, and that, as delays in such matters were
undesirable, the ceremony should be performed the very next day.
Thus far had Ophelia Pigspud certainly overcome the evils with which
fate had threatened her, and she began to feel confident that all would
go well, and that her triumph would be final and complete. Twelve
o'clock came, and the appointed reception was duly held, the
proclamation that it would be so having attracted many of the better
class of Pigmies. The shortness of the notice was no hindrance to this
result.
In some countries, I have been told, when subjects are admitted to the
presence of their sovereign, they are compelled, whether men or women,
to adopt a costume which they never think of wearing at any other time,
which is exceedingly inconvenient and sometimes ridiculous. Although
these ceremonies take place, like the royal receptions in Pigmyland, in
the broad daylight, the ladies who attend are obliged to do so in
dresses more fit for evening parties, with their heads fantastically
arranged and crowned with feathers, more ludicrous than imposing,
while, irrespective of weather, their throats and chests are exposed in
a manner exceedingly likely to produce colds and coughs and such like
undesirable ailments.
The gentlemen, all armed with swords, as if the sovereign was likely to
order a sudden attack upon them, or to require their services in order
to repel one upon himself, are dressed in various degrees of absurdity,
according to the particular rank or grade to which each belongs, but no
one wears an ordinary dress, and the whole thing is somewhat like a
fancy ball or a masquerade without the masks. These, however, are of
course only half civilized people, and not an intelligent and
progressive race such as the Pigmies. The latter appear before their
monarch in their ordinary clothes, the only regulation being that they
shall be decent and respectable, as in fact they always are. Thus the
sovereign sees his people as they really are, whilst they on their part
come into the royal presence without restraint, or the uncomfortable
feeling of presenting an appearance similar to that of a jackdaw in
peacock's feathers. This ensures a large attendance on reception days,
which are also the more frequently held, and at short notice, since
they do not entail upon the people, as in the countries to which I have
alluded, the necessity of long notice to dress-makers and tailors, and
the not inconsiderable expense contingent upon dealings with such
people. So although the proclamation was only made upon the same
morning, the greater part of the aristocracy of Famcram's capital,
together with many of the middle classes, who were not excluded from
that court, attended his reception.
Ophelia stood by his side, carefully retaining the jar of jam all the
time, and the little monarch was as submissive as upon the previous
day. The people saw and recognised her position.
Whether they murmured at all, or entertained any objection to the
sudden elevation of the daughter of Pigspud, I cannot say, but at all
events no such feeling was evinced, the reception passed off as well as
Ophelia could possibly have wished, and Famcram was as much her slave
as ever.
For greater security, she gave him a small piece of bread and jam
immediately after luncheon, and he really seemed to require no more in
order to keep him perfectly submissive and obedient to the will of his
mistress. Of course it was necessary to make great preparations for the
next day.
Chief Justice Pigspud, finding his daughter's position, to all
appearance, firmly established, took heart again, recovered much of his
former confidence, and began to hold up his head and to prepare to take
a full share in the future government of the kingdom. He naturally took
the lead in arranging the proceedings of the following day, the more
especially as Famcram seemed to have suddenly changed his character.
Instead of being captious, jealous, ill-tempered, arbitrary, and
tyrannical, he appeared to have subsided into a meek, quiet, timid
being, who hardly dared call his soul his own. He spoke, looked, and
moved as if in a kind of stupor, and obeyed every command of Ophelia
without a protest or even a murmur of objection.
The Chief Justice, seeing that this result had been obtained in some
mysterious way, was too well satisfied with it to trouble his daughter
by inquiries into the means she had used or the agencies she had
employed. It is due to the old man to say that he suspected nothing
unlawful, but even had he entertained such suspicions, I do not know
that he would have deemed it necessary to take any action upon them,
since, whatever the means taken, the end secured had been one so
desirable.
With all his faults Pigspud was not without generosity, and now that he
saw good prospects of prosperity before him and his house, he bethought
himself of his old associates, Binks and Chinks, and determined, if
possible, to effect their release from unmerited imprisonment.
With this object he went to his daughter in the afternoon of the day
before the wedding, representing to her that it would be a graceful act
on her part, and one likely to be popular with the people, if she were
to persuade the king to release his old ministers and their families,
and invite them to be present at his approaching nuptials.
Ophelia was somewhat vexed at the request. She hardly felt as yet
sufficiently secure in her position to run any risks, and, although she
would have been glad enough to have aided in the release of the Prime
Minister and the Lord Chamberlain, an indefinable something seemed to
tell her that in the daughters of the two ministers she would find
enemies who had better not be placed in any position in which they
could possibly do harm.
She knew the power which jealousy has over the female mind--that is to
say, in Pigmyland, though, of course, in ordinary countries, such a
feeling is unknown to the softer sex--and she feared she knew not what.
However, she felt that it would be ungracious, as well as ungrateful,
to refuse her father his first request, and she, therefore, told
Famcram that the prisoners must be released in order to be present at
the wedding next day. The king raised no objection, but did as he was
told, and orders were immediately sent to the dungeons for the
liberation of the ex-ministers and their families, at which they were,
of course, delighted; but some difficulty was experienced after their
release from prison, as to where they should go to, inasmuch as King
Famcram had appropriated all their property. As, however, their
respective houses remained unoccupied, they were permitted to return
thither, and make themselves as comfortable as they could. The ladies
of the party were the worst off, and great were their complaints of
total inability to appear in proper dresses at the festivities on the
ensuing day.
Ophelia felt for their difficulty, and did all she could to remove it,
supplying them with many articles of dress from her own wardrobe, and
assuring them of her sincere sympathy for their sufferings in the past,
and her readiness to promote their happiness in the future. So when the
morning fixed for the royal marriage dawned, all seemed likely to go
well, and content reigned upon the face of every Pigmy.
Owing to a conflagration which, at a subsequent period, destroyed all
the records in the public offices of that country, I am unable to
supply my readers with a full and accurate account of all the details
of the interesting ceremony which united Ophelia to her royal husband.